An Interesting Proposition
by That70sWriter
Summary: Jackie needs help studying for college, and she also needs help in life... so does a friend of hers.


Jackie laid her head down onto a stack of papers with a groan. Who had she been kidding? It'd been three years and she _still _missed Steven on the occasion. Some days she would stare out the window of her apartment, and she would think of how this city is the reason he's gone. She sat up, her papers sticking to her face now. _Ugh _she thought in annoyance, she also was studying for college, and to pay for it, she was waitressing at a fancy restaurant. This wasn't how she pictured her life to be at the age of twenty-one; she had expected to be married by now, and expecting a child. But Steven had ripped that out from under her with one weekend in Vegas with one single whore.

She could have forgiven him if it was just a one night stand thing, but he _married her _for God's sakes! It made her especially mad because before he went and did that, he refused to marry her! Jackie freakin' Burkheart! Feeling a new wave of anger flush through her body, Jackie stopped herself. It had been three years since they were together, and she had to forget him. Brooke kept insisting she set her up with her successful friends. She always refused, Jackie's musings were interrupted by a knocking on the door.

She got up, making sure to pull her sweatpants up as she did, she didn't need a random guest seeing her in her underwear. Jackie pranced to the door and looked through the eye hole, and she started with slight shock. She opened the door, "Well hello there Eric," she said pleasantly, which surprised him. "Hey Devil, I mean Jackie, look, Kelso and Brooke's kid Kaleb has colic, and he won't stop screaming so they told me that I could stay at their friend's apartment. I had no idea they meant you." Jackie laughed, actually very happy to see Eric for the first time in what, a year? The last time she saw him it was Brooke and Kelso's wedding, now here he was.

A look of confusion passed over Eric's features as he glanced over her shoulders, he grinned, "Jackie are you... studying?" he asked, his voice mocking. She hit his arm, "Yeah I'm studying you dink! I'm studying to become a teacher actually, don't say anything, anyways... so you have two choices, shut up and go to sleep, or help me study." He contemplated it for a moment, before saying with an even bigger grin, "Well goodnight then Jackie," he headed to what he presumed was the guest room, he would have guessed right, but Jackie stopped him. "No Eric, please please please PLEASE help me study, I need to get a degree!" she begged, grabbing his arm.

This confused Eric even more. "Jackie Burkheart actually begging for help, and being nice? It's like I've entered an alternate dimesion... please tell me I'm a Jedi here." he said hopefully, staring up at the ceiling, as if looking to God. Jackie laughed, but then she turned serious, "Please Eric, I know you don't like me, and I doubt Donna wants you hanging out with me bu-" Eric stopped her quickly, his eyes downcast. Jackie looked at him, "Wait... did you two... break up?" she asked, trying to gently broach the subject. He nodded, his face red, she gasped, "Ohh, Eric what happened?" she asked, sitting him down on her worn out couch. He looked at her strangely, again.

"Didn't Donna tell you about it? I assumed she did." he replied, confused once more. It was Jackie's turn to blush a dark red. She replied, somewhat shyly, "We haven't talked in three years. She didn't even acknowledge me at the wedding, she was so pissed that she wasn't a bridesmaid." Eric nodded, somewhat sadly, "Look I don't know how everything went down with you guys... but I figure that we could both gain something from this." Jackie looked up, intrigued.

"Look," started Eric, somewhat reservedly, "Donna kicked me out and I've been living with my parents again, she chose to become a groupie for some 'new and coming up' band that passed through Kenosha, ditching me, and there are no stupid teaching jobs available in Point Place, but there _is _a job in a local high school just down the street from Kelso and Brooke's house, and I was thinking about taking it... but I need a place to stay. I notice you have an empty room, and seem to require help with your studying, I am a teacher after all, and I could pay half the rent so you could pay of college quicker, and now I'm rambling and I should shut up."

Jackie stared at Eric for a few moments before answering his proposition.

"I like it." she said, her face breaking into a grin, she wanted to cry from relief.

He looked at her, happy, "You do? Oh thank you Jackie, Red's been threatening to make my ass into a hat if I don't move out!" She giggled, she had actually missed Eric. A lot more than she thought she would have. "Eric?" she asked, looking up at him, he looked at her, "Can I ask... how's Stev- How's Hyde?" she asked, feeling as if words were failing her. He smiled at her gently, "She's making him miserable," he answered. She smiled again, "Oh really? You don't know how much that means to me! I'm so glad that bastard is miserable!" He laughed, Hyde pretty much had shunned everyone since Eric's return and Jackie's departure.

That was the best gift Jackie could have received.

- - - - - - - - - -

Two weeks later, Eric's stuff had moved into Jackie's apartment, the guest bedroom was now his. She glanced at him, wondering if they made the right decision. His eyes made contact with hers, and she could tell he was wondering the same thing, "I think we're doing the right thing, we're friends... I guess, I mean, I can help you study, and it's only temporary, and DON'T WORRY, I won't invite Hyde here, ever." She nodded, happy to have _that _off the table. It had made her uncomfortable just thinking about it. She walked into his bedroom and looked around, it had a few posters, and action figures around it, but it was actually charming... in a geeky way.

"You ready to study?" he asked, smiling and nodding to her stack of books. She shook her head in agreement, walking out to the living room. As she sat down, she realized how strange this exact moment was. Eric Forman, her frenemy was tutoring _her _Jackie Burkheart to become a teacher... and she was actually enjoying his nerdy presence. The two began studying, and as the night went on, the two began talking more and more, diving deeper and deeper into a bag of chips. Eventually, her eyelids began drooping, and she felt drowsy. He smiled at her, happy to be near her for the first time since they met, this had been an intriguing proposition, and so far, as the beautiful girl fell asleep on his shoulder, he was happy with it.


End file.
